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casual definition

casu·al (kaz̸h′o̵̅o̅ əl)

adjective

  1. happening by chance; not planned; incidental a casual visit
  2. happening, active, etc. at irregular intervals; occasional a casual worker
  3. slight or superficial a casual acquaintance
    1. careless or cursory far too casual in his methods
    2. nonchalant; dispassionate affecting casual unconcern
    1. informal or relaxed a casual atmosphere
    2. designed for informal occasions or use casual clothes

Etymology: ME & OFr casuel < LL casualis, by chance < L casus, chance, event: see case

noun

  1. one who does something only occasionally or temporarily, esp. a casual worker
  2. shoes, clothes, etc. designed for informal occasions
  3. Mil. a person temporarily attached to a unit, awaiting a permanent assignment or transportation

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

casual Synonyms

casual

modif.

  1. Accidental

    chance, unexpected, unplanned; see accidental 1.

  2. Occasional

    erratic, random, infrequent; see irregular 1.

  3. Offhand

    accidental, purposeless, unplanned; see aimless, haphazard, random.

  4. Nonchalant

    blasé, apathetic, unconcerned; see careless 1, indifferent 1.

  5. Informal

    relaxed, unceremonious, easygoing; see informal 1, 2. See syn. study at accidental, random.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

casual Usage Examples

Possessives

  • block: A male casuals ' block and stone-breaking yard lay at the southwest.

Preposition: about

  • status: Deduction of wages for those working on a commission basis Fairness at Work White Paper: family friendly policies Casual about employe status?

Modifies a noun

  • observer: To a casual observer, ALI's timing looked bang on.

Modifying Another Word

  • seemingly: Even the most seemingly casual sketch, closely observed, reconstitutes an original, sculptural space about it.

Used with adjective complement

  • dress: I dress casual as I am in a casual setting.
casual usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

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MLA Style

"casual." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/casual>

APA Style

casual. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/casual

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